Hanger for electric conductors



NOV. 4, 1952 w, w s 2,616,827

HANGER FOR ELECTRIC CONDUCTORS Filed Nov. 28, 1947 INVENTORJ PVIQRPEN 1 LEWIS TTORNEY Patented Nov. 4, 1952 HANGER FOR ELECTRIC CONDUCTORS Warren J. Lewis, Mansfield, Ohio, assignor to The Ohio Brass Company, Mansfield, Ohio, a corporation of New Jersey Application November 28, 1947, Serial No. 788,429

(Cl. I'M-13! 2 Claims.

This invention relates to insulated hangers and particularly to hangers arranged to support trolley wire clamps, ears, etc.

Up to now it has been the practice to furnish such hangers with a protecting shell of metal providing an air space between the insulating portion of the hanger and the shell.

This type of hanger is used to a very large extent in mines where it is very difficult to maintain the insulation of the trolley wire to ground.

This difficulty is due to the accumulation of coal and rock dust, moist air and the drip of acid water on the surface of the exposed parts of the hanger forming a conductive coating on the surface of the insulating portion.

This coating becomes sufilciently conducting so that the leakage current generates enough heat to effect a carbonization of the surface of the insulation.

This carbonization may become sufficient to cause a power are between the trolley wire clamp or car and the ground thus destroying the hanger and requiring its replacement.

Leakage of current across the surface of the insulation may cause electrolytic action which is found to be much more rapid in destructive effect than chemical reaction alone.

Another effect of the leakage current is the deposit of a metallic film across the surface of the insulation aided by the disintegration of the exposed metal parts, especially the shell.

By providing the hanger with a protecting shell of a material unaffected by the moist air and acid-charged drip water a number of advantages are to be gained over the present construction of mine hangers especially by forming the protecting shell of a flexible non-metallic material such as rubber or rubber substitutes, plastics etc.

Therefore one object of this invention is to seal the top of the insulated portion of the hanger by a shell such that its surface is protected from the acid-charged mine water.

Another object is to increase the leakage path between the trolley wire supporting ear or clamp to the ground.

Another object is to increase the safety to the operator by eliminating the danger of tools of metal shorting between the trolley wire or its clamp and the shell, which shorting often takes place when the shell is of metal.

Still another object is to provide a shell which may be be rolled back to facilitate the cleaning of the insulator portion of the hanger.

Further, the protecting shell being of a re- 2 silient, yielding material would yield when struck. by a flying trolley pole, and absorb the energy of the impact in place of the impact impinging upon a non-yieldable member of the hanger.

In the drawing which illustrates one embodyment of this invention- Fig. 1 shows in partial section a side view of this invention as applied to an overhead wood beam support.

Fig. 2 shows a full bottom View of the hanger and support shown in Fig. 1.

In the disclosed embodiment, the hanger H is shown as supported below an overhead beam 1 by means of a lag screw 2 having an end 3 threaded to receive the insulating portion P of the hanger.

As is well known by those familiar with the use of hangers in mines, an expansion bolt secured directly in a opening in the mine roof may be used in place of the lag screw.

The insulating portion P is provided with an internally threaded member 4 of metal to receive the threaded end 3 of the lag screw 2 and a second member 5 of metal forming an inverted cup member within which is positioned the member 4. The lower face 5 of member t forms an abutting face for the boss 3 of a trolley wire support.

Projecting from the face 6 of the member 5 is a threaded stud l to receive the boss B of the trolley wire support. The stud 1 has an enlarged head which interlocks with the member 5 and supported thereby.

The members 5 and i are insulated from the member 4 by a molded insulating composition 8 which also covers the outer side surface of the insulating portion P and a portion of the lower face.

Mounted upon the upper face of the insulated portion is an inverted cup-shaped shell S with the depending side portion or wall 9 spaced from the insulating portion P and extending well down the insulating portion for the purposes previously set forth.

This shell S is formed preferably of a flexible, elastic or resilient material such as natural or synthetic rubber or other plastic not affected by moisture or acid-charged drip water.

The shell S is provided with a stiffening bead ill at its lower edge and a perforated boss portion H on its upper face which is forced into engagement with the support I by the upper face of the insulating portion P, particularly the face I2 of the member 4.

The member 4 is protected on its side face by the rim [3 of insulation which also engages the shell S.

It will be noted that the member 4 and the lag screw 2 are sealed against contamination by the corrosive resistant shell S and if desired the side Wall 9 may extend as low as necessary to meet requirements.

While the material for the shell S is preferably non-metallic still if the resilient and flexible properties are not essential under some circumstances but freedom from attack by the acidcharged mine water is essential, then the shell S may be made of some metallic material such as stainless steel or aluminum alloy, If desired, the member S may be secured to the insulating portion as by interposed cement or other approved means thus providing a unitary device.

The projecting threaded portion 7 may be formed as an integral part of the member in place of a separately formed member as previously described.

The means for securing the hanger to a sup: port may be made an integral part of the device if so desired.

Having thus described this invention, I claim:

1. A hanger for an electric conductor comprising a first metallic member to receive and engage an element for attaching the hanger toa support, a second metallic member having a, conductor support afiixed thereto, the first member having a portion of enlarged transverse cross-section and having another portion of substantially reduced transverse cross-section, and the second member being generally cup-shaped and having a concavelyeformed lateral inner portion receiving the said enlarged portion of the first member and a lip portion Op osed to and circumscribing the said reduced portion of said first member, said lip portion defining an opening larger than said enlarged cross-section portion, means for electrically insulating the first and second members from each other and for maintaining them in assembled relation comprising a body of insulating material engaging and substantially enclosing laterally both said metallic members and having a portion disposed between the first and second members as a sleeve substantially filling the space between said members and bearing firmly against said concavely-formed lateral inner portion of the second member, and an inverted cup-shaped shell of rubber-like material axially telescoped relative to the first member and having a side wall radially spaced from said first member and an end wall apertured to receive a hanger attaching element and to be compressed between said first member and a supporting structure.

2, A hanger for an electric conductor comprising an. insulating portion provided with a first metallic means to receive and engage a member for attaching a hanger to a support and with a second metallic means having a conductor support, said second metallic means being in insulated and telescoped relation to the first said means, an inverted cup-shaped shell of flexible and resilient rubber-alike material axially telescoped relative to the portion insulating the first and the second means and having a side wall radially spaced from said portion: and an end wall imperforate except for a single aperture to receive said member and compressed between said portions insulating the first and the co d m ns a d a s o t n mem e W R N J, EWIS" REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the fil o th s patent:

NITED TATES PATENT Number Name Date 484,209 Locke Oct. 11, 1892 501,481 Meston July 11, 1893 726,912 Hebendahl et a1. May 5, 1903 1,006,042 Alsberg- Oct. 17, 1911 1,170,723 Allerding Feb. 8, 1916- 1,794,673 Creager Mar. 3, 1931 1,806,294 Kempton May 19, 1931 2,110,607 Meisse Mar. 8,1938 2,135,558 Bott Nov. 8, 1938 

1. A HANGER FOR AN ELECTRIC CONDUCTOR COMPRISING A FIRST METALLIC MEMBER TO RECEIVE AND ENGAGE AN ELEMENT FOR ATTACHING THE HANGER TO A SUPPORT, A SECOND METALLIC MEMBER HAVING A CONDUCTOR SUPPORT AFFIXED THERETO, THE FIRST MEMBER HAVING A PORTION OF ENLARGED TRANSVERSE CROSS-SECTION AND HAVING ANOTHER PORTION OF SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCED TRANSVERSE CROSS-SECTION, AND THE SECOND MEMBER BEING GENERALLY CUP-SHAPED AND HAVING A CONCAVELY-FORMED LATERAL INNNER PORTION RECEIVING THE SAID ENLARGED PORTION OF THE FIRST MEMBER AND A LIP PORTION OPPOSED TO AND CIRCUMSCRIBING THE SAID REDUCED PORTION OF SAID FIRST MEMBER, SAID LIP PORTION DEFINING AN OPENING LARGER THAN SAID ENLARGED CROSS-SECTION PORTION, MEANS FOR ELECTIRCALLY INSULTING THE FIRST AND SECOND MEMBERS FROM EACH OTHER AND FOR MAINTAINING THEM IN ASSEMBLED RELATION COMPRISING AS BODY OF INSULATING MATERIAL ENGAGING AND SUBSTANTIALLY ENCLOSING LATERALLY BOTH 